Corporate lobbying in EU hits record €382m amid deregulation wave, new research finds

Cash for lobbying the EU institutions has hit a new record, according to new research by the Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO).

In a report released on Thursday (11 June), CEO, a pro-transparency NGO, revealed annual spending of €381.75m for lobbying European institutions, marking a 50 percent increase since 2020.

Their research alongside that by fellow non-profit Lobby Control found that the number of industry organisations with a lobby budget of at least €1m has grown by almost 30 percent since 2020.

The campaigners stress that increased spending has translated into a significant number of industry-friendly policies.

“We are witnessing corporate lobbyists with bold and increasing powers to influence policy,” the report states. 

Alongside banks and chemical companies, the most significant lobbying groups are in the energy and fossil fuel industry, tallying €52m in spending per year on lobbying, and tech groups which spent €73m annually. 

Campaigners warn that this spending power is accompanied by what they describe as a deregulatory wave led by EU commission president Ursula von Der Leyen and the right-wing-dominated European Parliament, “slashing hard-won rules that exist to protect social and environmental concerns”.